


It Gives You Courage

by thaumatologist



Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: But Mostly Comfort, Domestic Fluff, Family Bonding, Hurt/Comfort, Jim's a Good Egg, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Rated T for swearing, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-17
Updated: 2018-12-16
Packaged: 2019-09-20 16:08:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,781
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17025834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thaumatologist/pseuds/thaumatologist
Summary: Jim and Bones are cornerstones in each others' lives, and it shows even in the smallest of moments.Prompt-based drabbles about Jim, Bones, and their lives together, in multiple iterations.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey friends! 
> 
> I've been working on these dialogue prompt based drabbles as writing exercises and posting them to Tumblr; with the recent content flagging going on, I figured I should post them to AO3 to make them easier to find. These wouldn't exist at all without the encouragement of kryptoniteconundrum of Tumblr and spacejackalope here on AO3. Thanks for your support, you guys!
> 
> Prompts and applicable warnings will be posted in each chapter, and tags added as new chapters are. This chapter's prompt is: "Stop it! That tickles!" No warnings apply.
> 
> Enjoy!

“Stop it! That tickles!” Jim cried, drawing his feet back towards him.

Joanna sat back on her haunches and crossed her arms over her chest. She pulled a very familiar face–one that he had gotten many times from her dad. “Uncle Jim, I can’t paint your toes if I can’t touch your feet!”

He squirmed a bit. “But Jojo, it tickles.”

She raised her eyebrow–she’s seven! He can’t even do that!–before turning to look at Bones laid out on the couch. “Daddy, tell Uncle Jim he has to have his toes painted if he wants to come to my tea party.”

“Just have him lay his feet flat, darlin’. You can paint ‘em without touchin’ his feet,” he said without looking up from whatever medical journal he was reading.

Jim bent his knees before planting them firmly on the ground in front of him. “I think we can work it this way, right?” Joanna nodded before crouching in front of him to continue painting. “So why’d you choose pink?”

“Because it’s Wednesday,” she said shortly. Jim nodded to himself, because how was he supposed to respond to _that_.

With minimal tensing and toe scrunching, Joanna finished painting his toenails. She didn’t pause before she took his left hand to begin painting his fingernails. When she reached his ring finger, she switched to a gold polish before continuing again with the pink.

Her hands were steady, her movements very deliberate. She kept the polish mostly off his skin, except for his finger tips. He couldn’t deny that the gold complemented the vivid pink polish well; he’d always been pretty fond of gold as a color in general. Not that he was biased or anything.

“I’m glad you don’t have your dad’s style,” he stage whispered, eliciting a huff from the couch.

“But I have daddy’s hands, according to mama,” she said, moving onto his other hand.

“That you do. Do you think I could convince him to paint my toes sometime?” He asked, glancing over at the couch to see Bones raise an eyebrow at him.

“Don’t push your luck, kid.”

Joanna finished his pinky with a flourish. “Now don’t you smudge these before they dry, Uncle Jim. No royal can have smudged nails.” He saluted her, careful to follow her instructions. With a nod, she turned to look at Bones. “Your turn, daddy.”

Still reading from his PADD, he toed his socks off before readjusting so his feet rested on the floor. “Blue, please, darlin’.”

“But it’s  _Wednesday_. That means you get pink.”

He finally looked away from his journal. “You mean me and Jim gotta match?”

“We all match,” she said, before lifting her foot in the air and wiggling her toes. Sure enough, the vivid pink could be seen across the room.

“Oh, all right,” he said with a soft smile. As if he would ever actually argue with his daughter.

He could get used to this: lazy days at home, feeling like a real family. Jim caught Bones’ eye over Joanna’s head as she set to work. His face broke into a wide grin, happiness bubbling in his chest when he got a warm smile in return.

Yeah, he could certainly get used to this.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This drabble comes from the prompt "I may be an idiot, but I'm not stupid." No warnings apply.
> 
> Enjoy!

Jim glanced at his chronometer again–it was half past 1900 hours, when he was supposed to meet Bones for dinner. It was entirely possible that his shift at Medical had gone long, or he had run into someone who needed help on a paper. It’s not like Bones could resist helping someone, no matter how much he bitched and moaned about it.

But Jim also knew Bones, better than either of them would like to admit, and he would’ve commed him to let him know if he was late. He always did. Unless it was, say, a day he didn’t want to deal with. A day where he would ignore all of the advice he had given Jim in the past three years about dealing with anniversaries and important, bittersweet dates.

So he swung by Medical to learn that Bones had, indeed, left an hour and a half ago. He swung by Bones’ dorm, only to find it empty. He even swung by the library, in case Bones thought he could hide from him there. He couldn’t, not when Jim had spent more than his fair share of time there second year, when he had had the roommate from hell.

He tried calling him. He tried hacking his way into the servers to find where he was (his PADD was in his dorm, which was already a no go). So he admitted defeat and made his way back to his own dorm, hoping Gary was out. His Advanced Tactics professor had assigned a doozy of a midterm paper, and he may as well get started on it.

He entered his access code, the doors swooshing open as always, and ordered the lights to seventy percent. Gary was conspicuously absent, so Jim went to start on his paper. It took him entirely too long to notice the lump under his covers, but he smiled softly when he did.

Of course Bones would seek him out without seeking him out. Desperate for comfort and afraid to ask for it, knowing that Jim would never think to look in his own bed. He put his PADD down before sitting on the edge of his bed, reaching out to scratch Bones’ barely visible head.

The lump shifted and groaned. “What’re you doin’,” he asked gruffly, without moving his head away from Jim’s hand.

“I’m pretty sure I’m petting you, actually.” He couldn’t stop the smile growing on his face.

“Leave me alone,” he said, pushing his head further into Jim’s palm.

“I may be an idiot, but I’m not stupid,” he said, stilling his hand before placing it in his lap.

Bones huffed. “Coulda fooled me.”

“If you really want me to leave, Bones, I will. But I don’t think you would’ve curled up in my bed of all places if you wanted to be left alone.”

He turned his head to look at Jim, eyed bloodshot and sunken, before shifting closer to the wall. Jim took his boots off and shed his jacket before lowering the light and slipping under the covers behind him, tugging him tight to his chest. Bones laced his fingers through Jim’s, but stayed silent.

He slowly relaxed against Jim, inch by inch, never releasing his hands. “Thank you,” he said quietly, breaking the silence of seeming hours. Jim pressed a kiss to the join of his neck and spine.

“Always here to help, Bones, even if you don’t want to ask for it.”

He huffed a quiet laugh, briefly squeezing Jim’s hand. They could talk about it another time. For now, he was content to be in Bones’ presence, holding him until he drifted off to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This drabble comes from the prompt "Just don't buy a goat. I don't care what you do, just no goats." No warnings apply.
> 
> Enjoy!

Jim pulled on his windbreaker and tugged at his hair, looking at Bones in their shared kitchen. “Last chance to join me for the farmer’s market, Bones.”

“You go on ahead, Jim. I want to catch up on some medical journals while I have a free morning.” He pulled the pen from behind his ear, scrawling something into the crossword.

“Want me to bring you a cinnamon roll from Shelley’s? A pound of that bacon you like?” Jim turned back to the closet; he knew he had the reusable bags hiding in here somewhere. Nothing like asking for single use plastic bags at the farmer’s market to make you feel like the single worst person on earth.

“Whatever you want, darlin’. Just don’t buy a goat. I don’t care what you do, just no goats.”

Jim sputtered a laugh before finding the prized crochet produce bags. “What in the world would we do with a goat, Bones?”

“I don’t know what your fool head would come up with, I’m just trying to head it off at the pass. Now scram, I’m looking forward to a quiet morning.” His eyes were warm, though, as he sipped from his coffee mug.

“Love you, Bones,” he said with a wide smile.

“Love you too, Jim. No goats.”

Jim rolled his eyes as he left their apartment, shoving the reusable bags into his satchel. He had one very important thing to pick up today, and it had nothing to do with produce. Or goats.

—–

“Bones, I’m back!”

In the hour that he was gone,  Bones had moved to his armchair and was poring over those medical journals, highlighters uncapped on the table next to him. Good. He’d be distracted for the rest of weekend, so at least he got some of it done.

“Hopefully you’re livestock-free.” He glanced up, quickly, quirking an eyebrow over the papers in his hands.

Jim grimaced. “About that, Bones. I know you said no goats, and it’s not a goat per se–”

“Oh my God, Jim, what did you do this time?” Bones put down his papers, his forehead now creased with frown lines.

“Well, he just compared me to a  _goat_  for one thing. Thanks for that, Uncle Jim.”

Jim stepped out of the way with a flourish, presenting her to the masses, as it were. Her hands on her hips, exuding sass from every line in her face as she glared at Jim. Her expression changed to a sunny smile, though, as she moved her attention to Bones.

“Hi, daddy, it’s me!”

Bones’ face flashed quickly between confusion, astonishment, and sheer happiness as he scooped her up in a hug. “I see that, Jojo, I do. What are you doing here?” He asked, his question as much to her as it was to Jim. “Not that I’m not thrilled to see you, of course, just surprised.”  _What the fuck_ , is what he mouthed to Jim.

“I missed you, is all,” she said, hugging him tighter for emphasis. “And Uncle Jim said you’ve been real grumpy lately. I thought I could help.”

Jim threw up his hands, but he was blatantly smirking. “Go ahead and give that bit away too, why don’t you. Honestly, no secrets in this household.”

“Except this one,” she countered and Bones pulled out of the hug, laughing.

“Except this one,” he said, tapping her on the tip of her nose. “Go get your stuff put into your room, baby girl, and then you and Uncle Jim and I can think about lunch.”

She swept up the stairs, backpack in tow. “I want chicken salad!” she said without looking back.

_Thank you_ , Bones mouthed, looking at Jim with such a piercing sincerity that Jim almost choked on his next breath.

_Anytime_ , he mouthed back.


End file.
